by Esportbet is back with free Overwatch League (OWL) Kickoff Clash betting picks for Saturday, May 21. Here are our selections for Houston Outlaws vs London Spitfire, Los Angeles Gladiators vs San Francisco Shock, and Toronto Defiant vs Boston Uprising, with top esports betting odds courtesy of GG Bet.
HOUSTON OUTLAWS vs LONDON SPITFIRE OWL BETTING & MATCH DETAILS |
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| Best Odds: | Outlaws $1.10 at GG Bet | Spitfire $7.00 at GG Bet |
| When: | April 17, 2020 | 12:00 PDT |
| Watch Live: | Twitch, YouTube |
?We’re two weeks deep into the 2022 Overwatch League season, so it’s fair to start evaluating teams and what they can bring to the table. First up, we have London Spitfire, who many viewed as the worst team heading into the fifth Overwatch League season, but they quickly proved that is not the case.
Spitfire have won two of their three series against Vancouver Titans (3-0) and Boston Uprising (3-1), while their only defeat came against San Francisco Shock (0-3). A unique team with a strong upside, London Spitfire, have shown enough to earn our respect, but can they defeat Houston Outlaws?
It seems like a rather unlikely outcome on paper, but it’s not like the Outlaws have produced anything spectacular so far. They have lost against Toronto Defiant (2-3) and San Francisco Shock and have only beaten Dallas Fuel, which isn’t enough to justify the currently offered OWL esports betting odds.
A bet on London Spitfire to win is a bit too optimistic, but they should be competitive, and at $3.50, the underdogs are a great value bet with a +1.5 map advantage.
London Spitfire +1.5 maps
LOS ANGELES GLADIATORS vs SAN FRANCISCO SHOCK OWL BETTING & MATCH DETAILS |
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| Best Odds: | Gladiators $2.62 at GG Bet | Shock $1.44 at GG Bet |
| When: | May 21, 2022 | 13:30 PDT |
| Watch Live: | Twitch, YouTube |
Los Angeles Gladiators lost against the improved Dallas Fuel (2-3) last weekend in a game they arguably should have won 3-0, but the Gladiators choked and got reverse swept. We have to give Dallas Fuel some credit for pulling off the upset, but at the same time, that defeat showed that LA are not as efficient in crucial moments.
This won’t help their cause on Saturday, when they take on the current best-performing team in the league. San Francisco Shock have been unstoppable, picking up four straight series wins while dropping only two maps (12-2).
As good as Los Angeles Gladiators can be, they have shown enough weaknesses for us to believe this will be a very tough match for them. It’s simple: the Shock have been playing cleaner Overwatch and should claim their fifth win of the season with some to spare.
San Francisco Shock -1.5 maps
TORONTO DEFIANT vs BOSTON UPRISING OWL BETTING & MATCH DETAILS |
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| Best Odds: | Defiant $1.16 at GG Bet | Uprising $4.50 at GG Bet |
| When: | May 21, 2022 | 15:00 PDT |
| Watch Live: | Twitch, YouTube |
Boston Uprising enter this match as $4.50 underdogs, and that’s a fair price for a team that looks like one of the weakest in the league. They might be better than Vancouver Titans, but the Uprising don’t deserve to be ranked much higher than that.
They’ve won one series against the Titans (3-2) in the opening week but have since lost against London Spitfire (1-3) and Los Angeles Gladiators (1-3). A 1-2 record doesn’t look too bad, but considering the quality of the teams Boston have had to face, we expected much more from them.
Toronto Defiant are by no means one of the top teams in the OWL, but they have done enough to be viewed as one of the contenders for the Kickoff Clash title. They’ve beaten Houston Outlaws (3-2), lost against Washington Justice (3-1), and crushed Paris Eternal (3-0) on Sunday.
It’s hard to properly evaluate the Defiant and say how high this team can fly, but they’re beating teams they should, and that’s enough for us to take their side in this matchup.
